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Meet Lauryn Williams

MEET THE MUSE: Lauryn Williams ~ first American woman to have won a medal in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, financial planner, person of great integrity

SOCHI, RUSSIA – FEBRUARY 20: Lauryn Williams of the USA Bobsled team poses in the Olympic Park during the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics on February 20, 2014 in Sochi, Russia. (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images)

What makes you leap out of bed?

Usually it is the dog whining because he is wide awake and ready to play but, when he sleeps in I am excited to get up and take on all the things the day has to offer. I am an early bird gets the worm kind of girl. I enjoy the feeling of the possibilities the day brings with it.

What did you dream about when you were 8?

I wanted to be just like my God Mother, she was a neonatologist I knew to be like her I had to be smart so the dream was simple: be the smartest person in the class.

What do you dream about now?

Serving people to the best of my ability to help them live their best life. So much can be accomplished when you collaborate with others on you goals and dreams.

What matters most to you?

Authenticity- I think the most important thing is not being someone other than who you are

What do you tell young people to do?

My motto is: hard work knows no limits. What I believe

is that when you are work hard towards goal, doors will open for you. People will come along side and share their knowledge. The resources you need will start to appear. The first step is to start working hard toward your goals.

What is your most marked characteristic?

Who truly just has one? I would hate for just one thing to stand out about me. I think every person you asked would have a different answer based on their interaction with me.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

I have not achieved my greatest achievement yet but I know I will so I will share it. It is earning my CFP certification. I have obtained MANY degrees and certifications and other forms of education. The process for the CFP has been such a thorn in my side that I know all the hard work will pay off and I will be over them moon to have achieved it.

What do you want to be remembered for?

Being a person of great integrity who helped as many as I could.

Let’s dive deep:

What is holding you back from living the life you want?

Confidence. Is it so easy to second guess yourself. This affects all

my goals. For instance when speaking in front of a crowd I get SUPER nervous. If the presentation is supposed to help me gain clients they are not interested in working with someone who doesn’t seem confident. I can accomplish all my goals if I do a better job of believing in myself.

What is your greatest fear?

Making a poor decision that would permanently damage my reputation. This is a very unforgiving world. People sometimes make mistakes and learn from them. I am hypersensitive about how the decision I make could affect my future. Sometimes it prohibits me from living my fullest life.

What has been your greatest life lesson?

Making decisions without proper information. Allowing myself to be taken advantage of because I didn’t have the guts to speak up. I guess you would call that being naive that the person on the other end of whatever the misc transaction I was involved in would be doing the right thing for me.

What breaks your heart for others?

Those who live in a place where hate is more readily available than love. Fleeing your country on foot because of the violence is just terrible. Mass murder by a person you never interacted with is terrible!

How do you break your own heart?

I don’t get out enough in my new city. I have yet to make any meaningful connections. It’s sad and I am lonely but you only get out what you put in. It is really hard to make new friends.

If you had the world stage for one moment, what would your message be?

I am a Fee-Only Financial Planner who loves to serve younger individuals. Financial literacy has not been passed down thru generations. GenX and Millennials are highly entrepreneurial and bounce around quite and bit as they find work they are passionate about. This requires a different kind go planning than our parents who chose a job with good benefits worked for 30 years and had a retirement package in place. Younger people are willing to earn less in pursuit of work life balance and need help with literacy in planning of the long term. Professional Athletes are a group that is preyed upon but Investment guys who sell products and earn big commissions while calling themselves financial advisors. They are very busy and have been conditioned to focus solely on sport and delegate everything else. As a former athlete myself I can relate to the culture and hope to make a difference in the way athletes are treated going forward.

What is your “why” behind it?

Even if a person doesn’t choose me they know they have a choice that I feel is superior to what has been available until recently.

What should people know about your work?

This work is deeply important to me. So much of what people think of themselves is tied to their money and it just shouldn’t be like that. Being financially organized relieves so much stress that people are better able to give the world their best contribution. There are many things in life worth winning and money shouldn’t block your ability to go after them.

Share your inspiration with us:

When and where are you most inspired?

When I don’t feel the pressure of time. When I have nothing to do, no where to be is when I am most excited, most productive, and most creative. I don’t like deadlines and interruptions.

If you could inspire one change in yourself, what would it be?

I would be a naturally confident and articulate speaker.

If you could inspire one change in the world, what would it be?

No GUNS ANYWHERE! I wouldn’t need one if no one else had one.

Where do you look for inspiration in your daily life?

I look to the person that is most likely to become invisible as you go about your day. I make it a point to SEE people. It is so easy to walk out of

the grocery store and not remember a single detail about the person who just checked you out. We are so detached we view them as a machine that is part of a product purchase. The clerk at check out and your waitress at a restaurant, these are real people who can inspire you.

Who inspires you?

The person who gets up and does their job because they love it not because of the benefits it offers. For instance, in college, I had a full scholarship and was grateful for it. I was always amazed at the walk ons who showed up every day despite that fact that they were not likely to get to compete more than once or twice on our home track. To train all year for only two races was unbelievable to me, and they worked HARD.

Want to share a quote or a poem or a song lyric that inspires you?

What doesn’t kill you can only make you stronger and I am not dead yet so I must be getting stronger! ;-)

Thanks for the inspiration. xo,muse

About Muse

Muse is a source of inspiration, a heartbeat, a movement, a call to action, a question, an answer, support, celebration, nourishment, a standing ovation, a sense of wonder, a platform, an invitation, a conversation, a voice…your voice, our collective voice.